Pfizer to Sell Vaccine to Poor Countries for Fraction of Price

Pfizer will sell vaccine for $3.50 a dose

Pfizer (PFE), the worlds second-biggest drugmaker, agreed Monday to provide millions of doses of its Prevnar 13 vaccine to poor countries for a fraction of the price.

The deal to provide Prevnar 13 (Prevnar outside of America), which protects against 13 strains of pneumococcal disease, to poor countries is part of an effort by various countries, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and GAVI to provide cheap vaccines to poor countries. Together the groups donated $2.8 billion to create a program that would guarantee steady, high-volume demand for vaccine makers who agree to sell their vaccines for $3.50 each or less to poor countries. One Prevnar dose cost $130 in the United States, reports the Associated Press.

Past deals with Pfizer have it providing Prevnar to poor countries until 2023, which covers up to 48 million doses of the drug. An estimated 1.5 million lives will be saved by 2020 due to the vaccine. The latest deal, will have the company providing the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) with 260 million doses of Prevnar 13 at a reduced price until 2025.